Seeds of War
Seeds of War was the 37th session of the Daevenfell campaign, and the sixth session of Chapter 7: Crusade of the Damned. Morass summary Pursued by the strange spider creatures, Teft uses fire magic to cause an avalanche, killing them off. They die in radiant magical explosions, which Serval Locke recognizes as the same magic that Har'tovh Kee used to destroy Honour. They eventually run into more spiders, which they are unsuccessful in sneaking past. Surrounded, the weaker followers are nearly caught in an explosion that would surely kill them all, right as Lhoris grabs the massive spider-creature and runs off with it, taking the brunt of the explosion himself. They all survive, battered and bruised but alive. That night, Pilgrim asks Teft what their endgame is. They are still a week from The Domed City, and surely their mission will only get more difficult as they get closer. Teft mumbles something about lying their way in, or possibly bargaining passage through giving up the Sunstone, but it's clear he has no actual plan. Pilgrim is not reassured. Resistance summary Commander Harrion is let into the gates of Woodrope, under intense scrutiny. Edith names her terms for an alliance: Every single member of The Resistance will accompany them through the portal, even though The March intends on leaving every useless mouth behind. They will hold onto the artifacts stolen from Gainswood, and he will stay in chains until they are halfway to The Domed City. In return, she reveals what they found in the depths of Tír Annouhns, and that Heather is under their control. Harrion is shocked at everything The Resistance has achieved right under their noses, even if he's not especially pleased with the results. He agrees to the terms, and Edith-as-Mayor-Ycaron sells the alliance to the people through a rousing speech about forgiveness and escape. The issue remains, though: Har'tovh Kee is insanely powerful even on his own, and with Ycaron's Drow as a meat shield, they'll never be able to get to him. Do they know of any weaknesses they might exploit against King Ycaron? Edith remembers what fractured the group in the first place: Ycaron's loyalty to Yllaria, for which he was even willing to give up his revenge against King Gargaroth. Harrion is taken aback. He knows Yllaria. She was offered up as a tribute to The March by King Gargaroth under guise of being a brave volunteer. At the Citadel, they had her drink from Gainswood's chalice, which warps every race in a different way. She turned into something more monstrous, more bizarre than any other test subject. She was turned into Mother Myrtha. The Resistance is led outside the gates to Harrion's tent, as March soldiers back away, terrified of the violent sleeper cell in their midst. All counted, The Resistance has murdered more March members than even the elves, and it's implied the alliance was partly offered out of fear. Mother Myrtha is brought to the tent, and Edith-as-Bollox has her drink Water of Life. It works, and the fleshy outer layer of fat and tumors is drawn back to reveal an old Drow Woman. Edith turns into Drow-Ycaron as it happens, upon the sight of which, Yllaria faints. While Eddy Poole tends to the comatose woman, The Resistance gathers their belongings and get ready to move out. Edith and Narrow, both outcasts, share a moment reminiscing how Daevenfell, though hostile, has been the closest thing they've ever had to a real home. Now the time has come to leave it behind, one way or the other. Drow summary The army travels southwest, towards Bastion, yet don't encounter a single demon. La Luna is blotted out by clouds, and Ycaron starts feeling traces of doubt. Quintillion, still sceptical, warns that the elves know more tricks than they let on, proved by his discovery of their ghostly ship, floating invisibly behind them, even though the elves claim to be simple warriors. They set up camp on a hill, to watch for reinforcements from Bastion, and start building siege engines. Murmillo de Vara suggests they interrupt the reinforcements before taking Bastion, then disguise themselves as them to enter the city unopposed. After several days, they see a large company, a thousand strong, approaching in the distance. However, many hundreds of them are civilians unfit for battle. Quintillion tries to keep Ycaron from murdering innocents, feeling they've strayed too far from La Luna's ideals that they used to claim made them different. Ycaron nearly listens, when Har'tovh Kee drops the bombshell that Quintillion served as a close advisor to King Gargaroth right up to Ycaron's crowning. Furious about the betrayal, Ycaron dismisses Quintillion, and orders the army to prepare for battle.